Andrea Jenkyns unleashes furious rant at ‘establishment’ for ‘ganging up on Nigel Farage’

Dame Andrea Jenkyns has launched a staunch defence of Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, claiming he is being unfairly aligned with Russian President Vladimir Putin by the “establishment”.

The former Conservative MP told GB News that the entire establishment was “ganging up” on Farage following his clash with Prime Minister Keir Starmer in the Commons.

Her comments come amid growing tension over Ukraine policy and accusations from the Prime Minister that Farage is “fawning over Putin”.

The clash occurred during Prime Minister’s Questions when Farage questioned Starmer about potential British troop deployments to Ukraine.

Speaking to GB News, Dame Andrea Jenkyns said: “It’s the entire establishment ganging up on Nigel. I mean, if you actually look back at some of his previous speeches in the European Parliament, many times he called out Putin and the threat of Putin.

“This just plays into the rhetoric, trying to align Nigel with Putin, which the opposition parties, including ourselves, are doing. They want to make somebody the bad guy, and it’s him.

“I do actually think that Starmer didn’t handle it correctly. I mean, look at Trump. When I first watched those clips, I was aghast, and I thought, Oh gosh, I was cringing at it and even tweeted about it.

“But when I actually watched the 50-minute full interview, you see a different perspective a much more balanced perspective. But look, Trump is clearly a strong negotiator from what we’re seeing today.

“America makes up over 60 per cent of the NATO budget. These are our main players. Our deterrent is reliant on the US with the submarines.

“And so, to discount Trump from the table, as Starmer did, I think that was wrong. We should be bringing them into the fold and all being grown up about this together.

“And the second thing as well, which really confuses me, Martin, is the fact that all the years I was an MP, and when the war in Ukraine began, the rhetoric from all parties and all mainstream media was, ‘Do not put any British boots on the ground because it’ll escalate to World War III.’

“So, I want to know what’s changed. Is what Starmer’s trying to do going to escalate?”

Farage has previously made controversial statements about Putin that have drawn criticism.

In a 2014 interview with GQ magazine, Farage said of Putin: “As an operator, but not as a human being, I would say Putin.”

During the 2024 election campaign, he faced significant backlash for suggesting Western actions had provoked Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

He told the BBC’s Nick Robinson that the West had “provoked” Russia through NATO and EU expansion eastward.